Come for the Ride!

I’m not sure if most developers and entrepreneurs operate the same way as I do, but when I’m in true startup mode, I tend to shut off most if not all distractions. For me, this means no TV during the day, no nights out on the weekends, no early nights before 1am and basically zero fun during the early (development) sprint. Though it’s not a big deal for me, I basically skipped the holidays this year too.

When needed, I’ll take a ramen break if my body stops being productive or watch a movie so my conscious brain and eyes can take a break while the subconscious figures out problems in the background; gotta love the backup brain. In more recent times, I’ve been putting music on… but I think most people do that when they code. Since music doesn’t provide anything new like news or gossip, it doesn’t provide distractions like Digg or Engadget would.

Like a sick marathon runner who repeatedly train and sign up for races, I’ve been down this path a few times without a medal to show off the achievements; but the motivation is still there. In all honesty, I can’t tell you why I like doing this to myself even 15 years later… but I’m doing it. As baffled as I am of the marathon runners, I’m sure my choice is one that most people don’t understand either. For the record, I only run when disasters happen. (e.g. a tornado chasing me)

So this lifestyle takes a toll… a little on me but I’m sure more so for everyone around me. My wife has been a champ; taking care of the house, the dogs and keeping the shelves full of ramen. Well, she’s actually a great cook, but I’ve gotten lazy when it comes to personal nourishment.

My friends have been great though I honestly haven’t seen them in recent times except for holiday gatherings. I’m sure there are about 10 bad movies out there I want to see with them but I’ll have to wait till they’re available on Netflix.

So I guess this post is a question for all the entrepreneurs who are reading this: what do you guys do when you’re working on your idea? Do you try to do a better job at balancing life and work or is it a mad dash every time you start something new? I’d be interested in seeing if successful startups share this craziness or if they approach it more modestly. At this rate if nothing else changes, burnout seems to be the only way this process could end.